The Stanley Clarke Band

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African American, Bass, Jazz, Stanley Clarke

The-Stanley-Clarke-Band

The Stanley Clarke Band | The Stanley Clarke Band – [Heads Up International, 2010] Release: (June 22, 2010)

Unlike his previous acoustic bass releases, Clarke feels that this album’s music is fresh and different from just about anything he’s done before. Produced by Clarke and Lenny White, the range of collaborative material on The Stanley Clarke Band has allowed him to venture to new levels of experimentation, utilizing his arsenal of bass instruments. Clarke compares this new release to the first three albums of his solo career: Journey to Love, Stanley Clarke, and School Days, with long extended electric pieces that take the listener on a kind of journey.

“Technically, it’s a Stanley Clarke record, but it’s very much a band-oriented record at the same time,” says Clarke. “I may be the leader, but everyone played an important role in what emerged. If a project like this can be looked at like a ship, I’d be the one steering the ship and keeping everybody on course. But all hands were definitely on deck, and everyone played an important role in getting us to our destination.”

Legendary Pianist Hank Jones Passes Away

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African American, Hank Jones, Jazz, Piano

Hank Jones - Photo Credit: Jimmy Katz

Hank Jones, pianist and jazz legend, beloved husband of Theodosia, dear uncle to his nieces and nephews across the country, friend to music, inspiration to countless musicians, died May 16, 2010 in New York City, after a brief illness. He was 91 years old, and would have been 92 on July 31st.

Jones’ longtime manager and Justin Time Records representative Jean-Pierre Leduc reflects “Today we celebrate his spirit, his gift, his joy, his wisdom and his friendship. Hank lived and breathed music, and was never far from a keyboard, even at the end. His incredible burst of productivity these last few years – concerts, recordings, fundraisers, clinics – was unprecedented and truly remarkable.”

Born in 1918 in Vicksburg, Mississippi, Hank Jones grew up in Pontiac, Michigan, the eldest of the acclaimed Jones Family, which included trumpeter, composer and bandleader Thad Jones and drummer Elvin Jones.

New Releases [Jazz] for the Week of 5/17/2010

Tags

African American, Grover Washington Jr., Jazz, Regina Carter, Violin

Greetings’ my fellow jazz aficionados, May continues in week three with a mosaic of distinctive, and insinuating sounds, immaculate melodies, relentless rhythms with the opulent flavors embedded in jazz is here to quench our ongoing thirst for quality music.

On this weeks play-list, I’ve got a host of exquisite sounds including the incomparable Grover Washington Jr.’s – new project titled “Grover Live” produced by Jason Miles … also in the mix we have Motor City native and violinist Regina Carter’s fascinating debut on E1 Music titled “Reverse Thread.” The Grammy-nominated artist new record is our “Featured album of the Week”. Oh man, fusion enthusiast the time has come drummer Lenny White’s highly anticipated release “Anomaly” is due this Tuesday. Trumpeter Alex Sipiagin arrives with the lyrically satisfying “Generations” along with tenacious Tim Warfield on saxophone stirs up a delicious brew on “A Sentimental Journey” both records are available on Criss Cross Jazz.

The aforementioned artists/titles and more to be released this week at Amazon.com.

Featured Album of the Week

Regina Carter - Reverse Thread

Regina Carter | Reverse Thread – [E1 Music, 2010]

One of the most beloved artists of her generation, preeminent violinist Regina Carter has achieved another landmark in a creative history that has yielded both artistic and commercial triumphs. Her newest release, Reverse Thread, starts with exquisite traditional African music and infuses it with contemporary jazz and Afropop energy. The results are uplifting, stirring, and joyful. Regina’s Reverse Thread Band adds virtuoso Yacouba Sissoko on kora – the West African harp traditionally played by village storytellers–to her longstanding rhythm section.

Flux Music Essentials … [Redman, Scott, Glasper, Steps Ahead, & Sample]

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African American, Christian Scott, Jazz, Joe Sample, Joshua Redman, Robert Glasper, Steps Ahead

Flux Music Essentials

Greetings jazz aficionados, I’m back once again this time with five spellbinding jazz titles from the shelves of Flux Music Essentials! The following recordings fit perfectly into the mold of what I view as being the usual suspects … at least from my perspective. Pull’em off the rack and take them for a spin. Although similar in context, these gems where originally recorded to create an atmosphere with just enough complex nuances and innovation painted on the canvas to make these jewels a worthwhile listening experience.

Joshua Redman Quartet - Moodswing

Joshua Redman Quartet -|- Moodswing – [Warner Bros, 1994]

This recording in my opinion is the freshest and finest work that Joshua Redman has produced. Considering that the band make-up of Brad Mehldau, Christian McBride and Brian Blade are three of the baddest young jazz musicians today, they have also become major band leaders in their own right. I think this was the recording that set them all on their way. The songs vary from melodic to sonically intense. McBride and Blade blaze a rhythmic trail followed by the creative yet subtle piano stylings of Mehldau, all giving way to the superior improvisational skills of Redman. The songs seem almost lyrical in their expression. Whether you are a Joshua Redman fan, or someone who has never experienced his music before, this is the beginning (although he had two prior quality releases prior) of the spectacular career of one of the finest tenor sax players of these times…

Frank Glover | Abacus

Tags

Clarinet, Frank Glover, Jazz, Saxophone

Frank Glover - Abacus

Frank Glover | Abacus – [Owl Studios, 2010]

Indianapolis-based clarinetist and soprano saxophonist Frank Glover’s musical concept on Abacus is not necessarily involved in counting, or painting by numbers. This is a combination of orchestral sounds paired with soloist Glover and his quartet that goes beyond what would normally be heard in this format. There’s a certain division of labor between Glover and the Wood & Rodin, Inc. 24-piece group conducted by Dean Franke, but their collective vision stretches far past the immediate horizon and into celestial territory. You hear minimalism associated with Steve Reich, elegant jazz à la Duke Ellington, and cerebral tones closer to Igor Stravinsky or Pierre Boulez than J.S. Bach and Johannes Brahms.